Treasury

Notification of Contingent Liability

Jeremy Hunt: The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Bank of England (“the Bank”) decided at its meeting ending on 3 February 2022 to reduce the stocks of UK government bonds and sterling non-financial investment-grade corporate bonds held in the Asset Purchase Facility (APF) by ceasing to reinvest maturing securities. The Bank ceased reinvestment of assets in this portfolio in February 2022 and has since commenced sales of corporate bonds on 28 September 2022, and sales of gilts acquired for monetary policy purposes on 1 November 2022. The then Chancellor agreed a joint approach with the Governor in an exchange of letters on 3 February 2022 to reduce the maximum authorised size of the APF for asset purchases every six months, as the size of APF holdings reduces. On 4 November the Governor and I agreed to reduce the maximum size of the APF from £966bn to £886bn to reflect the unused portion of the recent financial stability related APF expansion. Since 05 May 2022, the total stock of assets held by the APF for monetary policy purposes has fallen from £866.6bn to £851.6bn. In line with the approach agreed with the Governor, the authorised maximum total size of the APF has therefore been reduced to £871bn. The risk control framework previously agreed with the Bank will remain in place, and HM Treasury will continue to monitor risks to public funds from the APF through regular risk oversight meetings and enhanced information sharing with the Bank. There will continue to be an opportunity for HM Treasury to provide views to the MPC on the design of the schemes within the APF, as they affect the Government’s broader economic objectives and may pose risks to the Exchequer. The Government will continue to indemnify the Bank, the APF and its directors from any losses arising out of, or in connection with, the facility. If the liability is called, provision for any payment will be sought through the normal supply procedure. A full departmental Minute has been laid in the House of Commons providing more detail on this contingent liability.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

UK Earth Observation

George Freeman: The government is announcing today a package of up to £200m funding to invest in the UK Earth Observation sector to protect the future of UK talent and industry in earth observation and mitigate the impact of ongoing delays to UK participation in the EU Copernicus programme, while the EU continues to block our association. Earth observation (EO) is a vital science and a growing industry. This is the right time to time to invest in projects which benefit our planet and grow our economy – EO supports the UK to become a science superpower and prioritises our space and Net Zero ambitions – more than half of key climate data comes from space. The UK has a vibrant landscape of world leading EO academic and industrial organisations and a well-founded reputation for excellence in EO. For example, in climate science, leading UK research institutions have been measuring Sea and Land Surface Temperature from space for over three decades (Oxford University, RAL Space, Reading University and Leicester University); this data is used by meteorological agencies around the world to improve weather forecast accuracy – helping to save lives, infrastructure and crops. In the National Space Strategy, HMG committed to remain at the forefront of earth observation technology and knowhow. The investments announced today will deliver an essential funding boost to recognise the importance of this work/market and will benefit academia and industry and build our national capability. The funding is spread across 17 projects delivered through the following government partner organisations: £137.6m UK Space Agency (UKSA)£19.3m Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)£14.7m Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC)£11.7m Met Office£4.2m Innovate UK These projects will deliver benefits across the UK and include a broad range of activities from measuring wind speeds to improving the accuracy of climate data, and from funding SME projects to additional PhD places. Some projects will involve new or extended collaborations with international partners such as Australia. Investing in the UK EO sector is a vital part of achieving our ambitions in space and with the range of applications of EO data including Net Zero targets, but it is just the first step. Over the last few months, my officials have begun discussions with the earth observation community about the longer term plans for the sector. The package announced today provides an interim response to what we have been hearing are their biggest challenges. We will continue to work with the sector to identify strategic priorities to keep building on the world-leading excellence in UK earth observation. These investments are UK wide and will provide targeted support during this time of uncertainty. They aim to support the retention of talent and firms across the sector, and we have particularly focused on how to ensure both academia and industry can benefit from these projects. Context The EU has now delayed our association for nearly two years. The UK has done everything it can to secure association, including entering into formal consultations to encourage the EU to implement their obligations. The Government remains ready to discuss association with the EU, but with the EU continuing to refuse our request to formalise association, we cannot wait forever. Our priority is to invest in the UK’s EO sector, and protect our knowledge and capabilities.

Department of Health and Social Care

Health Update

Maria Caulfield: Yesterday, NHS England announced an independent review will be taking place regarding the unacceptable incidents which took place at the Greater Manchester Mental Health Trust this year. It will focus on how these incidents were able to happen and why the failings were not picked up.The abhorrent treatment of vulnerable people at the Edenfield Centre shown in the Panorama episode was completely unacceptable. Every patient has the right to be treated with dignity and respect, in a caring and therapeutic environment where their rights are upheld, their needs are met, and they feel supported and listened to.This is why I welcome the steps taken by colleagues in the NHS to investigate these events. As my Honourable friend, Will Quince MP, stated in Parliament on 13 October 2022, this should not have happened. Therefore, it is vital that we get to the bottom of what went wrong so that we can make sure we do better in the future. As I said at the dispatch box, I have also instructed my officials to consider what is needed on wider issues for mental health inpatient care, separately to this independent review. I will give an update on this in due course.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Publication of the UK Joint Fisheries Statement

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The UK Joint Fisheries Statement (JFS) has been published today that sets the direction of fisheries management in the UK over the coming years. The four fisheries Administrations have worked together to develop shared policies which as a package, will deliver or contribute to delivering the eight objectives set out in the Fisheries Act 2020. A copy of the JFS has been placed in the library of both Houses and is available on GOV.UK.